I'm researching a windsurfing gear refresh and part of this is a replacement for my battered 122L Kombat.

The 122L Starboard Kode is virtually the same board and the obvious replacement. I like the board a lot, but - at 200lbs it still requires quite a bit of wind (hence how it ended up surf tossed onto a Jetty).

There are many ways to sail and lots of shapes to consider. I'm an experienced sailor who is maneuver oriented rather than speed; and I'm looking for a board which works for barely capping bump and even lighter wind wave sailing. I have smaller gear for when there's more wind.

Based on specs and limited reviews I'm thinking the Exocet X-Cross 130 might be the ticket.

What???
No tips and suggestions for my windsurfing friend here??
Don is a very experienced expert windsurfer. He sails the local Seattle area (when there's some wind)... and occasional Gorge trips (but not very often).
HOWEVER, he has quite a bit of wave experience, windsurfing out on the coast (which I have none of).
And that's where his real passion lives !!!

But he's practical and has a busy job... and it's a LONG drive to the coast, so he doesn't get there as much as he wants either.
He only sails shortboards and what he likes the most is: fast hard jibes... and looking for B&J conditions to work on chop-hops. But the Lake close to where we both live doesn't have lots of B&J winds. However, he's got his life set up, so that whenever a little storm front heads through, he's there. He's happy to spend time slogging (when he works on lightwind shortboard stuff)... but looks for the gusts to get ripping and then he can crank a tight jibe off a piece off chop... or try to loft a little jump off it.

So yeah - What are some good board suggestions for his 200 lbs... that would be fun (not concerned about slalom speed or tracking ability... he wants tight maneuverability) in these conditions, probably between 10 and 25 mph (lots of 12 - 20)... where he can slash and cut up the chop and boost a little air once in a while???
(He's got skills... he just needs enough wind and the right board.)

AND - with this same board - he "mostly wants it" to work with his passion for the waves at the coast !!!
For the lighter days there (probably the same wind, from 10 to 25)... enough volume to get him around when it's light... but able to catch good waves, which is where he wants to focus. Lots of quick wave turns and maneuvers. And when he's powered-up heading back out, able to get some good jumps.

WHAT BOARDS SHOULD HE BE CONSIDERING that would work well for both venues ???

Note - He already has wave/bump boards for high winds... so, not talking about that here.
Also - he's done lots of "wave SUP stuff" at the coast when there's no wind... so, he knows his way around the surf.

Anyway, I'm no help when it comes to wave sailing. But with ALL the guys on iW that sail coastal areas (and the Great Lakes)... I figured he'd get some good, helpful suggestion.

OK.......I fall into the class known as heavyweights at about 230 lbs and I share Don's passion for not sailing in a straight line and I've owned a whole bunch of boards in search of the best board for my needs. Best ever was a 9'-3" hollow, blue Doyle board with about 115 liters. I sailed that board for about 12 years before it finally started to breakdown internally. I've never seen another one so I don't know if any others even exist. That board was fast, smooth, turny, loved to chop hop and it was extremely durable. If you decided to go fast, it could do that too. If you wanted to go slow and controlled, it could do that. May she rest in piece!

My current go to board for 17 to 25 mph is a 105 liter Rogue Wave Wide Glide by Lee Brittain. The one I bought is the same one still advertised on windsurfingclassifieds.com . http://www.windsurfingclassifieds.com/Equip/boards_listing.asp?ID=13173
Not sure why the ad still shows up on that website since I purchased it about 3 years ago. I've modified the board to give it a deep "V" with concaves on the bottom from about the rear of the mast track forward. This helps give it a smoother ride in the crazy crosschop you can get in 20-25 mph winds. This board planes up early, is quite slashy, is just a so-so chop hopper, and it seems to be holding up very well. You have to work pretty hard to make it turn really sharp, but it will do it. Lee does build a very good board. It came with an A-Box for the fin but I took that out and put in a Tuttle box because I needed to put in bigger fins to handle my weight, and I just didn't trust the A-Box for the stress I wanted to put it thru. I'm not as fond of the Rogue Wave as I was the Doyle, but it gets the job done and is not hard to live with.

I recently picked up some styrofoam blocks and plan to build a board in the near future to fit the numbers I took off the Doyle with a few modifications to smooth the ride when the chop gets super bad.

I've tried a bunch of the popular boards like Exocet Cross, F2 Ride, A-H-D, Starboard carve, etc. I've probably owned or tried out about 15 of them. They were either plagued by poor construction and broke down within a year, or pounded horribly in any chop, or they were impossible to make turn sharp. Some were just too "sinky" when the wind would suddenly shut off, like when you're sailing the outflow from a squall. Some of the good ones like the Pro-techs and Doyles are gone forever but occasionally you can find one. My most recent find is a Pro-Tech Freestyle prototype from about 2001.

Only problem is it's too small for winds under 22 mph but it is light and very well built and fun to turn and fun to chop hop. For sure, the market doesn't cater to us windsurfers over 180 lbs because there just isn't that much demand, but occasionally a good board comes along that is worth owning.

Last edited by thombiz on Tue Jul 09, 2013 11:34 am; edited 2 times in total

I love my Tabou 3S 96. At 195 lb, I can schlog it if I have to. It's not much fun, but gets me back to the beach. It's more turny than the Rocket, but still planes early. For going out in lighter winds on a regular basis, the 106 or 116 would probably be a better choice. For trying before buying, rent from Andy at Wind-NC in Hatteras, or Matt Pritchard on Maui. Might be tough to get a light wind day on Maui right now, though.

i'm 212 lbs. been surf sailing for lotsa years. if you have to sail a short board, the X-Cross 130 is good. the type of conditions i have to sail in are quite often less than ideal. if using it in with onshore angles, i have learned to sail it extremely lit up. that's based on several factors, the usual onshore problems, and my perspective with using planing long boards meant to be slogged thru the surf in these same varied conditions.

the fin it comes with is very small for the board. base all the way back.

my preferences lean toward the cross 114 carbon. it's got a longer water line, and a smoother slog to plane power. i can enjoy its pumping to plane aspects better than the X-cross. windsport just finished their test of the 115 X-Cross. they loved it. so everyone's different.

If bump and jump the the something like the X-Cross or the RRD Firemove. Not as loose on the wave as a wave board, but better for jumping.

If light wind wave sailing then it depends on the wind angle. If more onshore than cross shore, listen to jingebritsen about the Exocet Curve 11'5. If more cross shore than onshore, look at the 2014 Goya Quad 118. I'm 190-195 lb and I have the 2013 Quattro Quad 110 which is perfect for cross and cross onshore down to about 14 mph. Below that wind limit I need more volume to climb whitewater, and I have a SUP with a mast track (RRD 8'5 Wassup).

I used to have the Starboard Aero 117 (predecessor to the Kombat 122), and it was a very slow to plane board, but lots of fun on a wave. I have no idea if the Kombat was any improvement in early planing. The Quattro Quad 110 L is a much earlier planing board than the Aero. I can get it to plane as early as lighter sailors on FSW boards using similar size sails as me (though that may be the sails I use and how I rig them).

I read the first 2 posts again. Priority waveriding, and some moderate wind bump and jump sounds like a big quad to me. I am with Capetonian. I have sailed the Goya 104 and Quatro 110. These were the biggest in 2012 and 2013 respectively. Wow, now a 118 to try. I vote for the Quatro 110.

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